Saturday 31 March 2012

Hectic week!! and some potato help please.

Well as the title says it's been a hectic week so work on the allotment has been scarce and I didn't even get chance to write my Tuesday Tater post or Forecast Friday, let alone keep up with all my favourite blogs do for this I apologies. The 'tasters' post can wait for next week but I will give you a quick weather summary in this post.

Well the weather was glorious and I managed to get a little gardening and allotment work done but no where nears as much as I would have liked. Some days though it was just too warm to want to be out in the middle of the day.

Weather turned cooler Friday which is just typical as the children have now finished school for Easter break and I have two weeks off work. Not to worry though, I can assure you I will get plenty of work done on the allotment over that period no matter what the weather!!

There were a couple of light frosts at night but the temperatures during the day got as high as 18degrees Celsius!!

Work carried out on the allotment hasn't been extensive and has mainly been getting sorted and tidied up and one half of the plot is almost complete now so I am very happy with my progress.

sinks at the allotment
The sinks are sorted and in place ready for harvesting the vegetables in the future.

new strawberry bed
My final decision for the strawberries was near the raspberry canes. I have bricked this off nicely and then put a centre line of bricks. Half of this space will be used for strawberries and then the other half will be used for extra crops up until the pint where the strawberries need moving.

freshly weeded allotment
I managed to get some weeding done and then the soil nicely raked over...this hasn't been dug or manured as it is to be this years potato bed and I will dig and manure as I plant.

Weeds at the allotment
And finally this is the little bit still to be weeded on this side then this one is ready for the planting season. Still need to sort out the new path edging but this is cosmetic and can be slotted in when I have the time.

So that's where I'm at for now. I haven't even bought my potatoes yet and I was wondering if you could help me there. I have tried several over the years but have never been truly happy with them once cooked so I wondered if an of you had any you could recommend. I am after a nice either first or second early which boils up well and isn't powdery and doesn't fall apart...so quite a waxy texture really. I would be grateful for any recommendations you have. So far I have tried, Rockets, Charlottes, Maris Peer and another that I can't quite recall the name of though I would know it if I saw it.

Hope you all have a good weekend.
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9 comments:

  1. I grew Arran Pilot last year, and although it isn't so much waxy, it does boil well. So much so that I'm growing it again this year. I know what you mean about potatoes falling apart, I've grown so many that just boil to mush so I was really pleased with this variety last year. It tastes delicious too. I've also grown Sharpes Express which I was pleased with, but I did need to keep a bit of an eye on them in the pan. It looks like you've got your allotment in to shape ready for planting. I'm still digging away, but I'll get there in the end.

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    1. Thanks for your suggestions Jo, remember how I said there was another variety that I couldn't name but would know if I saw it...happened to be Arran Pilot...typical....lol

      Will bear Sharpes Express in mind though.

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  2. It's really difficult to recommend potatoes Tanya as the soil, weather conditions, amount of water and etc can affect the taste and cooking properties. Potatoes that boil into the water one year are maybe fine the next due to different weather.
    Charlotte performs well for us as do Juliette and Nicola. We also like Winston but some people don't rate it. WE grew International Kidney which is also known as Jersey Royal which is supposed to be a choice potato variety but for us it din't do at all well! Try to find out what people on your site are happy with.

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    1. I know what you mean by recommendations due to soil conditions Sue but everyone on our plot swear by either Arran Pilot or Charlottes and I just haven't rated them. I did try a few international Kidney that someone had grown last year and enjoyed them so that is something for me to think about although the yield was quite low I think I would sooner have a lower yield and something I really enjoy than a lot of something I'm not totally happy with.

      I may give Pentland Javelin a go though...have you ever tried those??

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    2. I think we may have used Pentland Javelin ages ago but don'r remember much about it Another we have liked the taste of is Maris Bard grown in potato sacks.

      Just shows really as International Kidney didn't impress us taste or yield wise but we are on heavy clay which may make the difference.

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  3. If my dad was still around I'd be able to ask him about potatoes for you. He was an expert with them. I don't think I'll even attempt potatoes this year. I'm going to go for spaghetti squash.

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    1. Pity your Dad isn't around to help me Ratty. Spaghetti squash sounds interesting, I've never grown that...what will you be making with it?

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    2. Spaghetti squash makes a good healthier spaghetti substitute. It's a big yellow squash and the insides come out in strands that are just like spaghetti. The taste is similar too but with a little bit of sweetness.

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    3. Sounds interesting..I have never heard of it but I am now about to go and search for seeds. I have heard of shark fin melon which is what a poor man would use to make shark fin soup...not sure I would want to try a fruit that tasted like shark as I didn't like it much...none the less it's good to know of substitutes so thanks...I really want to try this one and get the children too...maybe I could even talk the Hubby into trying it even though he doesn't like pasta!!

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keep it clean...keep it relevant...I look forward to reading your comments!!